An increased risk of hearing loss in people with diabetes is now a given, and some organizations such as the American Diabetes Association (ADA) and the National Institute of Kidney and Digestive diseases (NIDDK) are trying to spread awareness about this problem.

In what is undoubtedly a vote of confidence in their basic concept, last week, SmartCells announced that the company had been awarded $283,515 grant for Phase I funding as part of the NIH/NIDDK's "Fast-Track" Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program. The big deal is that it would completely eliminate hypoglycemia, and also significantly reduce the burden of blood testing. grant Todd Zion SBIR NIH NIDDK 2007 SmartCells Small Business Innovation Research venture capital

In what is undoubtedly a vote of confidence in their basic concept, last week, SmartCells announced that the company had been awarded $283,515 grant for Phase I funding as part of the NIH/NIDDK's "Fast-Track" Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program. The big deal is that it would completely eliminate hypoglycemia, and also significantly reduce the burden of blood testing. grant Todd Zion SBIR NIH NIDDK 2007 SmartCells Small Business Innovation Research venture capital

Her 1998 post was actually a compelling critique of the DCCT and the NIH/NIDDK's subsequent plans to use the results of that particular study for things like using "behavioral theories and strategies to maximize diabetes self-management" and "to study interventions to decrease psychiatric and social co-morbidities in individuals with diabetes (for example, depression, eating disorders, and family dysfunction)" rather than putting more funds into things like cure-related research.

True, diabetes does have something to do with blood glucose levels (sometimes mistakenly referred to as bloodsugars, including by many doctors who try to use terms that are easy to understand), but the disease rarely has anything to do with with cane sugar. When blood glucose levels stay high consistently, thats indicative of diabetes. They can normalize their bloodsugars and avoid complications, but the underlying insulin resistance remains. MORE >>

Essentially, the company's form of insulin, if it continues on its thus-far successful path, will release insulin molecules in direct proportion to a patient’s blood glucose levels, eliminating the nasty side-effect of hypo or hyperglycemia caused by all current forms of insulin. The NIH/NIDDK is perhaps one of the company’s biggest "investors". Con A binds insulin-containing liposomes that are coated with sugars, to each other, to form the inhaled particles," Annapragada said. MORE >>

Essentially, the company's form of insulin, if it continues on its thus-far successful path, will release insulin molecules in direct proportion to a patient’s blood glucose levels, eliminating the nasty side-effect of hypo or hyperglycemia caused by all current forms of insulin. The NIH/NIDDK is perhaps one of the company’s biggest "investors". Con A binds insulin-containing liposomes that are coated with sugars, to each other, to form the inhaled particles," Annapragada said. MORE >>

Kelly Kunik at Diabetesaliciousness(TM), for example, recently wrote a post entitled " Diabetes Blog Plagiarism Is Rising Faster Than My BloodSugar After A Six Course Pasta Dinner!! ", as have several other diabetes bloggers. By Deb Butterfield, author of "Showdown with Diabetes" "Insulin therapy, via daily injections or a pump, is a poor substitute for the bodys exquisitely precise regulation of blood glucose by insulin-producing pancreatic beta cells." MORE >>

I think special attention should be raised on the current leader of the NIH/NIDDK, and Dr. Griffin Rodgers, who is supposed to be representing our needs to Congress. The editors also noted that elderly people often receive less-intensive treatment of risk factors for heart disease, such as high blood pressure and cholesterol, than younger people. I sincerely hope that the NIH/NIDDK, JDRF and others are reading my recommendations on what types of studies they should be pursuing! MORE >>